And The Award Goes To.. – 9 Oscars Category Predictions

Somewhere between September of the previous year to March of the current year, there is a mad rush of events in between Halloween, Hanukah, Christmas, New Years, Valentines and Easter. The most anticipated of these events being the 86th Annual Academy Awards. It’s a week later than it usually is because of the Winter Olympics but this means we get ONE WHOLE EXTRA WEEK to speculate on who will win, who will be denied a well-deserved Oscar again (cross your fingers for Mr. DiCaprio) and to a lesser extent, who will have a wardrobe malfunction. On March 2nd at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, the best films of 2013 will be awarded. In preparation for this, the whole interest is abuzz. 

Here are our predictions:

1 Best Picture

Everyone assumed that the top spot would be between Gravity and 12 Years a Slave which is reminiscent of Oscar battles of other years – an expensive 3D film vs a smaller, historic story. Sound familiar? This year, however, looks like it would be a close 4-way fight.

The nominees

American Hustle, Captain Philips, Dallas Buyers Club, Gravity, Her, Nebraska, Philomena, 12 Years a Slave and The Wolf on Wall Street.

Predictions

• The Big Winner – 12 years a Slave
• Close Competitor – American Hustle and Gravity

2 Best Director

This one is a bit easier to predict and less of a close race than the Best Picture predictions simply because you need to be disciplined, hardworking and a creative genius to direct something as outstanding as Gravity. For this, Alfonso Cuarón takes our award and our hearts.

The nominees

David O. Russell for American Hustle, Alfonso Cuarón for Gravity, Alexander Payne for Nebraska, Steve McQueen for 12 Years a Slave and Martin Scorsese for The Wolf on Wall Street

Predictions

• The Big Winner – Alfonso Cuarón for Gravity
• Close Competitor – Martin Scorsese for Wolf on Wall Street/ David O. Russell for American Hustle

3 Best Actor

Although the internet hoped that Matthew McConaughey was nominated for The Wolf on Wall Street (come on, you know that the 2 minutes that he did appear in the film were EXTRAORDINARY! Uhh – cue crazy humming for the rest of the day). However, the universe wants Leonardo DiCaprio to finally win that Oscar that has been dodging him the way Neo dodges bullets. Will this be his lucky year?

The nominees

Christian Bale in American Hustle, Bruce Dern in Nebraska, Leonardo DiCaprio in The Wolf of Wall Street, Chiwetel Ejiofor in 12 Years a Slave and Matthew McConaughey in Dallas Buyers Club

Predictions

• The Big Winner – Matthew McConaughey
• People’s Favorite– Leonardo DiCaprio
• Close Competitor – Chiwetel Ejiofor in 12 Years a Slave/ Bruce Dern in Nebraska

4 Best Actress

Considering that Cate Blanchett has won the SAG, Critics Choice and Golden Globes for the Blue Jasmine, this Oscar prediction should be a no brainer. But could this be Amy Adam’s lucky year seeing as she’s the only one among the nominees who hasn’t yet won?

The nominees

Amy Adams in American Hustle, Cate Blanchett in Blue Jasmine, Sandra Bullock in Gravity, Judi Dench in Philomena and Meryl Streep in August: Osage County

Predictions

• The Big Winner – Cate Blanchett in Blue Jasmine
• Close Competitor – Amy Adams in American

5 Best Supporting Actor

Jared Leto seems like the surest bet under this category. Despite being a first time nominee, he has one all the other pre-Oscar awards. He’s up against some pretty good competitors.

The nominees

Barkhad Abdi in Captain Phillips, Bradley Cooper in American Hustle, Michael Fassbender in 12 Years a Slave, Jonah Hill in The Wolf of Wall Street and Jared Leto in Dallas Buyers Club

Predictions

• The Big Winner – Jared Leto in Dallas Buyers Club
• Close Competitor – Michael Fassbender in 12 Years a Slave

6 Best Supporting Actress

The best supporting actress showdown seems like it will be an intense battle between Lupita and Jennifer Lawrence. While both are stunning in their performances, will Jennifer take home an Oscar 2 years in a row?

The nominees

Sally Hawkins in Blue Jasmine, Jennifer Lawrence in American Hustle, Lupita Nyong’o in 12 Years a Slave, Julia Roberts in August: Osage County and June Squibb in Nebraska

Predictions

• The Big Winner – Lupita Nyong’o in 12 Years a Slave
• Close Competitor – Jennifer Lawrence in American Hustle

7 Best Foreign Language Film

I was a bit disappointed that some of the films I was rooting for didn’t make it to the final list of nominees. I was looking forward to seeing Saudi Arabia’s Wadjda on the list, alongside Chile’s Gloria. The list still boasts of strong contenders.

The nominees

The Broken Circle Breakdown from Belgium, The Great Beauty from Italy, The Hunt from Denmark, The Missing Picture from Cambodia and Omar from Palestine.

Predictions

• The Big Winner – The Great Beauty from Italy
• Close Competitor – The Broken Circle Breakdown from Belgium

8 Best Documentary Feature

This is another category where I favored some of the snubbed documentaries, my favourite being Blackfish and Stories we tell. The critics seem to love The Act of Killing though and could have a photo finish with 20 Feet from Stardom.

The nominees

The Act of Killing by Joshua Oppenheimer and Signe Byrge Sørensen, Cutie and the Boxer by Zachary Heinzerling and Lydia Dean Pilcher, Dirty Wars by Richard Rowley and Jeremy Scahill, The Square by Jehane Noujaim and Karim Amer and 20 Feet from Stardom whose nominees are yet to be determined.

Predictions

• The Big Winner – The Act of Killing by Joshua Oppenheimer and Signe Byrge Sørensen
• Close Competitor – Dirty Wars by Richard Rowley/20 Feet from Stardom

9 Best Animated Feature

With the number of nominees up on this list from Disney Animation, it could well be that they finally win an Oscar in the Animated Feature Category. Miyazaki may also be honored with a victory for his last film “The Wind Rises”.

The nominees

The Croods, Despicable Me 2, Ernest & Celestine, Frozen, The Wind Rises.

Predictions

• The Big Winner – Frozen by Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee and Peter Del Vecho
• Close Competitor – The Wind Rises by Hayao Miyazaki and Toshio Suzuki

About the author: cupitonians is list crazy and has seen many shrinks for her obsession. They were quick to declare that she couldn’t be helped and so she’s taken to promoting lists as the next ruler of the universe. In her spare time, she blogs about random things, travels on whim and strings questionable words together for a living.